Protectors for buttons having shanks



June 30, 1964 J. DE GRAZIA PROTECTORS FOR BUTTONS HAVING SHANKS Original Filed Dec. 25, 1959 INVENTOR. JOSEPH 05 6242/4 United States Patent Claims. (Cl. 38-141) (Granted under Title 35, U.S. Code (1952), sec. 266) The invention described herein, if patented, may be manufactured and used by or for the Government for governmental purposes, without the payment to me of any royalty thereon.

This application is substituted for my abandoned patent application, Serial No. 861,682, filed December 23, 1959.

This invention relates to a protector for buttons and the like and more particularly to a means for protecting buttons upon garments during laundering, cleaning and pressing of the garments and it consists in the constructions, arrangements and combinations herein described and claimed.

In the present day practice of pressing or laundering garments, the garment is arranged upon a base pressing pad of the pressing machine and the presser head is brought into contact with the garment with considerable pressure and force, and when the presser head is brought into contact with buttons on the garment, such buttons are often broken, and when such buttons are of rigid construction, as found in military and other uniforms, the buttons embody a metallic shank and obviously the pressure upon the shanks will cause the collapse of the shanks, and in either event, the buttons must be replaced, entailing a substantial expense, as well as additional labor in the replacement.

It is therefore the principal object of the invention to provide a means for protecting buttons affixed to garments by deformable shanks, in which the protecting means is an element which may be readily adjusted between the base portion of the buttons and garment to which the buttons are secured, thus amply supporting the buttons, as well as protecting the shanks which secure the buttons to the garmen by the elimination of excessive pressure and consequent damage to the shanks or other attaching means.

More specifically, it is an object of the invention to present a button protector in the form of an elongated member which may be readily inserted beneath a seriesof aligned spaced buttons, the member being of thickness substantially the same as the spacing between the base portion of the buttons and the garment, which spacing is determined by the length of the shank or other attaching means of the buttons, thereby affording a supporting area throughout the underside surface of the buttons, and thus avoid excessive pressures or forces developed by the presser head.

Additional objects, advantages and features of invention will be apparent from the following description, considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawing, wherein,

FIGURE 1 is a perspective View of the protector as applied to a garment and the buttons, prior to the pressing operation.

FIGURE 2 is an enlarged cross section taken on the line 22 of FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 3 is a perspective view of a modified form of the button protector.

FIGURE 4 is a fragmentary top plan view illustrating 3,138,885 Patented June 30, 1964 drawing, wherein a fragmentary portion of a pressing pad 10 of a conventional pressing machine is shown for support of a garment 11, and as well understood in the art, a presser head not shown, cooperates with the pad in pressing of garments.

The protector 12, in the present instance, is formed from any suitable material, but preferably will be formed from a solid body of light material, such as aluminum. The protector 12 is of elongated form and includes an elongated central portion 18 of planiform having a thickness corresponding to the length of a button shank 20 and a width at least as great as the width of a button 19. The protector 12 in this species is divided longitudinally throughout most of the length of central portion 18 to form a slot as at 13, except at an end 14, where the opposed protector strips 15 are integrally joined.

The strips 15 have the upper faces 16 downwardly beveled as at 17 laterally of the planiform portions 18.

In use, the garment to be pressed, here indicated as a military coat 11, having metallic buttons 19 secured to the coat by means of shanks 20 and the usual stitching. With the garment properly arranged upon the pressing pad 10, with the buttons aligned as shown, the protector 12 is arranged with the open end of the slot 13 in alignment with the shank 20 of the first button; the protector then being moved along the garment so as to engage beneath each successive button. It will be noted from FIG- URE 2, that the buttons will be amply supported by the central portions 18 and the thickness of the solid strips 15 will prevent the shanks 20 of the buttons from damage by the pressure head when the same is brought down into pressing engagement with the garment.

The presser head of pressing machines are of such fullness as to present pressing surfaces between the strips formed by the slot, so that the garment will have a completely pressed appearance.

In FIGURES 3 and 4, illustrating a modified form of the protector, the construction is the same as just described, except that the strips 15' are formed with apertured cars 21 connected by pivot pin 22 for swingably connecting the strips. In applying this construction to a garment one of the strips is swung on the pivot 22 as shown in FIGURE 4, so that the strip may be moved into position beneath the buttons.

The form shown in FIGURE 5 is similar to that shown in FIGURES 3 and 4, but in this species, each strip 15" is formed with abutting inner edges in which are formed spaced elongated transverse notches 23 which are in registry one with the other to accommodate the shanks of the buttons when the elongated members are brought into lengthwise abutting engagement, and preferably the notches 23 are of such width as to accommodate variations in the location of the buttons on a garment.

In order to handle the protector conveniently, a chain 24 may be employed, secured thereto in any desired manner, which will also permit suspension of the protector at a convenient position to the pressing machine.

While I have shown and described preferred forms of the invention, this is by way of illustration only, and I consider as my own all such modifications in construction as fairly fall within the scope of the invention as hereinafter claimed.

I claim:

1. Protective means for protecting a row of buttons of a garment during a machine pressing operation, each button having a deformable shank, said protective means comprising an elongated incompressible solid member, said member including a top surface formed with a longitudinally extending central planiform portion having a thickness corresponding to the length of each of the shanks of said buttons, said central portion being formed with means for receiving said shanks therethrough, said top surface of said member having a longitudinally extending beveled side edge on each side of said central portion, and said member having a planiform bottom surface parallel to said top planiform portion and substantially wider than the same.

2. Protective means according to claim 1 wherein said means for receiving said shanks comprises an elongated slot formed through said member in said central portion longitudinally thereof, said slot having a closed end and an open end.

3. Protective means according to claim 1 wherein said elongated member comprises separate parallel strips and means pivotally connecting said strips together at one end.

4. The combination of claim 3, wherein said means for receiving said shanks therethrough comprises a slot extending longitudinally of said elongated member, and means spacing said strips apart to provide said slot.

5. Protective means for protecting a row of buttons of a garment during a machine pressing operation, each button having a deformable shank, said protective means comprising a pair of elongated incompressible solid members each having parallel side edges, each member having a longitudinally extending planiform top surface portion extending along one side edge thereof, the remaining top surface portion being downwardly beveled to the other side edge thereof, each member having a thickness through said planiform portion thereof corresponding to the length of each of said shanks, means connecting said members together at one end for pivotal movement into and out of parallel relation with said first named side edges abutting each other, said abutting side edges being formed with opposed notches for receiving said shanks therein, said members having planiform bottom surfaces which combine to form a single planiform bottom surface when said notched edges are abutting each other, and said single planiform bottom surface having a width substantially greater than that of said planiform top surface portion.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 556,935 Kramer Mar. 24, 1896 641,676 Curtiss Jan. 23, 1900 1,335,608 Schachne Mar. 30, 1920 2,410,208 Gauldin Oct. 29, 1946 FOREIGN PATENTS 19,370 Great Britain of 1912 17,975 Great Britain of 1914 116,972 Great Britain July 4, 1918 

1. PROTECTIVE MEANS FOR PROTECTING A ROW OF BUTTONS OF A GARMENT DURING A MACHINE PRESSING OPERATION, EACH BUTTON HAVING A DEFORMABLE SHANK, SAID PROTECTIVE MEANS COMPRISING AN ELONGATED INCOMPRESSIBLE SOLID MEMBER, SAID MEMBER INCLUDING A TOP SURFACE FORMED WITH A LONGITUDINALLY EXTENDING CENTRAL PLAINFORM PORTION HAVING A THICKNESS CORRESPONDING TO THE LENGTH OF EACH OF THE SHANKS OF SAID BUTTONS, SAID CENTRAL PORTION BEING FORMED WITH MEANS FOR RECEIVING SAID SHANKS THERETHROUGH, SAID TOP SURFACE OF SAID MEMBER HAVING A LONGITUDINALLY EXTENDING BEVELED SIDE EDGE ON EACH SIDE OF SAID CENTRAL PORTION, AND SAID MEMBER HAVING A PLANIFORM BOTTOM SURFACE PARALLEL TO SAID TOP PLANIFORM PORTION AND SUBSTANTIALLY WIDER THAN THE SAME. 